Guide to Reading Yu Yu Hakusho Fanfics
by sychopenguin5
Summary: Have you ever been reading a Yu Yu Hakusho fanfic and gotten confused by a character, Japanese word, or something else? This is basically just a bunch of definitions to help you with that. Includes all 133 named characters in the anime, with descriptions!
1. Warnings

HELLO AND WELCOME!

Sychopenguin5 here, bringing you a bunch of helpful little lists to help you out when you're reading fanfiction for Yu Yu Hakusho.

This is all my little sister's fault; she started reading fanfic but kept forgetting the side characters' names, so she asked me to make her a "cheat sheet" with all the characters, then I realized she might need help with some other things, and then I was trapped in this never-ending project! So I figure, what the heck, maybe there's other people out there just as confused as she is, so I might as well share! I hope this guide is a helpful to you as it is to her. =3

(Do not own Yu Yu Hakusho. Lotsa other people and organizations do.)

** Warnings:**

Instructions: authors use a whole lot of shorthand when writing their summaries. But when they're trying to warn you about content that may shock/disturb/revolt/scar you for life, it's really important to understand what they mean! Here is a list of the most commonly used slang—in my experience—and what they mean.

YYH = Yu Yu Hakusho

yaoi = gay relationship drama, often lemon/lime/smut (yuri = lesbian)

shonen-ai = gay romance, often fluff (shojou-ai = lesbian)

lemon = explicit sex scenes involving "going all the way"

lime = descriptive sexy stuff that doesn't actually "go all the way"

fluff = romantic mushy stuff, touchy-feely confessions, cuddling, kissing, non-explicit etc.

smut = lemon/lime, usually weird kinky stuff, usually oneshot

mpreg = male pregnancy

rapefic = contains rape or references to rape, but usually if they bother to put it in the warnings, it's explicit

oneshot = single chapter story, no plot, no background/buildup

slash = contains an unofficial and perhaps completely random pairing, often yaoi/yuri

crackfic = totally random, OOC, little plot, intended as comedy

postseries/spoilers = takes place after the original media ends and contains references to events at the end which gives something of the plot away if you haven't seen/read that far

OOC = out of character, meaning the way the character(s) behaves in the fic is something he/she would most likely never do in the original media

AU = alternate universe

A/N = author's note

OC = original character

Mary Sue = OC who is too damn perfect, usually wins over the sexy man with no effort

threesome = three-person relationship and/or lemon, watch out for when the pairings list contains more than one x, for example, "HieixKuramaxYusuke" is different than "HieixKurama, KuramaxYusuke"-the former means threesome, the latter means Kurama had two separate relationships over the course of the fic [Speaking of which, I havent figured out yet if the order matters. Like if HieixKurama always means Hiei is dominant and KuramaxHiei means Kurama is dominant? I'm still not sure, so can somebody inform me?]


	2. Characters

**Characters:**

Instructions: If there is a character you're a little confused about—like you're reading a fanfiction and you go "waitaminit, who _is_ this guy?"—then you simply scroll down the alphabetical list here and find the name you're looking for. I have included a little blurb about each character, intended to jog your memory and sum up their most important features. This is not intended as a substitute for watching any part of the anime, and it's definitely not a substitute for reading the manga, because I haven't read it and therefore did not include characters/features/events only in the manga. However, it does include both movies. WARNING: SPOILERS GALORE!

Also note: spellings of Japanese names in the English alphabet are up to interpretation. I have included more than one spelling option for some of the names. Also, everyone is listed by their first name (or first part of their name) where applicable, and any common aliases are redirected with a _see "This Entry"_.

Akarenjya = Team Gorenja, leader of, wouldn't beg for his life, third to be slaughtered by Elder Toguro

Akashi = mean teacher at Yusuke's school, the one with the chipmunk teeth

Aorenjya = Team Gorenja, begs for his life, second to be slaughtered by Elder Toguro

Atsuko Urameshi = Yusuke's mom, the drunk

Ayame = the other reaper chick, black hair & outfit, gives Koenma reports on the status of Sensui's portal

Bakken = Team Masho, pummels unconscious Kurama, exudes sweat-clouds, killed by Yusuke

Baldock = Genkai's tournament, bat-demon who lives in the Haunted Forest, defeated by Yusuke thus impressing Genkai enough to let Yusuke continue in the tournament

Botan = the grim reaper who picks up Yusuke, also Spirit Detective Assistant and Team Trainer

Boutagiri (Butajiri) = member of the Black Black Club, sponsor of Team Masho, killed by Toguro

Bui = Team Toguro, wears all that armor, can conjure up an axe, defeated by Hiei

Byakko = Maze Castle, tiger demon, defeated twice by Kuwubara

Chinpo = Genkai's Tournament, fat guy with curly mustache, defeated by Shorin (Rando)

Chu (Chuu) = Team Rokuyokai, Australian accent, powers up with alcohol, defeated by Yusuke, becomes friends

Dr. Ichigaki (Ichagaki) = Dr. Ichigaki Team, leader/creator of, tricked his fighters into becoming his experiments/slaves

Eikachi (Eiikachi) = Kuwubara's cat, one of the best characters EVAR.

Enki = wins the Demon World Tournament, becomes king, old friend of Raizen's

Enma (King Enma)= Koenma's father, ruler of Spirit World

Elder Toguro = Team Toguro, sits on younger brother's shoulder, formerly human but wished to become a demon, winner of the last 50 Dark Tournaments, body-manipulation & reconstruction powers, defeated by Kuwubara

Fubuki Sanada = daughter of Kuroko, twin sister of Kaisei, trained by mom on how to fight demons

Gama = Team Masho, makeup-blood powers, loses to Kurama

Gamemaster = _see "Tsukihito Amanuma"_

Garuga = one of the demons who kidnapps Koenma in the Golden Seal movie, defeated by Yusuke

Gatasubal = "impenetrable" robot that cannot feel pain, one of Dr. Ichigaki's early experiments, distracts Kurama & Hiei en route to the match between the two teams

Gatekeeper = _see "Itsuki"_

Genbu = Maze Castle, rock demon, killed by Kurama

Genkai = old lady, "grandma", trains Yusuke, fights on Team Urameshi as the Masked Fighter

George Saotome = Koenma's right-hand ogre, helpful for all sorts of things, mostly comic relief

Goki (Gouki) = partnered with Hiei & Kurama to steal the Dark Artifacts, eats human souls

Gokumonki = Apparition Gang, third of the Triad, big red giant with a club, holds Botan hostage but doesn't do very well with that, defeated by Yusuke and Kuwabara

Gondawara = _see "Suzeko Gondawara"_

Gonzo Tarukane = kidnapped Yukina for her tear gems, founder of Black Black Club, beheaded by Toguro

Hiei = half Koorime and half fire demon, a ruthless killer, serving probation on Yusuke's Spirit Detective Team after being arrested by same, major powers katana and Dragon of the Darkness Flame, last name commonly said to be Jaganshi

Hina = Hiei's mother, Yukina's mother, depression over her lost son led her to commit suicide

Hinageshi = other reaper chick in the Poltergeist Report movie, red hair & outfit

Hirue = Apparition Gang, transforms from a business suit-clad man to a giant green demon with six legs and a snout, killed by Kuwabara and Yusuke

Hokushin = Raizen's second-in-command/advisor, trains Yusuke after getting his Demon powers

Ichigaki = _see "Dr. Ichigaki"_

Inmaki = Apparition Gang, second of the Triad, possesses great speed and can go invisible, defeated by Yusuke and his Shotgun

Itsuki (Gatekeeper) = Sensui's right-hand-man/assistant/friend?, has 6 extra hands & psychic powers, in love with Sensui

Iwomoto = mean teacher at Yusuke's school, frames Yusuke for thefts, zombie-bitch-slapped by Keiko

Jin = Team Masho, Irish accent, wind master, defeated by Yusuke, becomes friends

Jiyaki = tiny demon that burrows inside the evil parts of human minds, takes over Sakamoto, arrested by Yusuke in his first Spirit Detective case

Juri = announcer girl for Dark Tournament who was brought in after Koto defied the committee, teal hair & webbed ears

Kai (M3) = Dr. Ichigaki Team, brown hair & scar on forehead, Grisly Claw, was tricked into becoming the Dr's experiment/slave/fighter, freed by Genkai

Kairen = evil demon, Dark Tournament champion 50+ years ago, slaughtered Toguro's students in order to get him to some to the Tournament, beaten by Younger Toguro

Kaisei Sanada = son of Kuroko, twin brother of Fubuki, trained by mom on how to fight demons

Kaito Yu (Taboo) = one of Genkai's students, goes to school with Shuichi, territorial power to ban violence and steal your soul if you speak the "taboo" word/s

Kaname Hagari (Sniper) = one of Sensui's minions, territorial power to make infallible projectiles out of anything

Karasu = Team Toguro, the rape-threat guy, power to create bombs, killed by Kurama but wins due to technicality

Katenyo = from Golden Seal movie, little girl in spirit world kindergarten that Koenma wins over

Kazemaru = Genkai's tournament, swastika-face guy, defeated by Yusuke and his dumb luck of falling in mud

Kazuma Kuwabara = best friend of Yusuke, standard idiot personality, obsessed with Yukina, uses Spirit Sword

Kazuya = one of Sensui's seven personalities, the violent killer one, has gun barrel for a hand

Kazuya Hatanaka = Shiori's second husband, Kurama's stepfather, Kokoda's father

Keiki = Netherworld minion of Yakumo, from the Poltergeist Report movie, power to replicate a person from your memories, uses Kuronue from Kurama's memories, Kurama catches on and kills him

Keiko Yukimura (Kayko) = Yusuke's "girlfriend", plays the damsel-in-distress role, bitch-slaps Yusuke a lot

Kibano = Genkai's tournament, helmet-in-the-dark guy, defeated by Yusuke with Genkai's cigarette

Kido Asato (Shadow) = one of Genkai's students, territorial power to immobilize you by standing on your shadow

Kirenjya = Team Gorenja, giant-sword-wielding cyclops, sliced in half by Bui

Kirin = Mukuro's second-in-command until Hiei usurps him

Kirishima = one of Kuwubara's friends, the brunette one

Kiyoshi Mitarai (Seaman) = one of Sensui's minions, territorial power to make water-monsters, switched sides to help Yusuke

Koashura = little kid villain from the Golden Seal movie

Koenma = prince of Spirit World, does all the paperwork deciding where people are sentenced to in the afterlife, owner of the guest team in the Dark Tournament

Kokoda Hatanaka = Kurama's younger stepbrother, after the brothers become close he is threatened by a demon parasite under orders from Sachi (Kokoda is called Suichi in the manga)

Koku = Enki's wife, one of Raizen's friends

Komada = one of Kuwubara's friends, the one with buzz-cut hair

Koroko Sanada = first-ever Spirit Detective—before Sensui & Yusuke, retired now, married name Sato

Koto = announcer girl for the Dark Tournament and Demon World Tournament, cat ears & tail

Kujou = Natsume's twin brother, one of Raizen's friends

Kurama = short for Yoko Kurama, once a legendary bandit in Demon World, now reborn in a human body as Shuichi Minamino, serving probation on Yusuke's Spirit Detective Team after being arrested by same, wields Rose Whip and other plants as weapons

Kuro Momotaro = Team Uraotogi, gum-poppin' dude, uses steaming spheres and beast armor, killed by Hiei

Kuroda = Genkai's Tournament, contract killer with glasses, defeated by Kazemaru

Kuronue = Kurama's dead "partner" from the Poltergeist Report movie

Kuwabara = _see "Kazuma Kuwabara" or "Shizuru Kuwabara"_

M1, M2, M3 = Dr. Ichigaki team, _see "Yen", "Ryo", "Kai", respectively_

M4 = Dr. Ichigaki team, gray-haired leopard-lizard demon, sliced up by Kurama and Hiei while distracting them en route to the match

M5 = Dr. Ichigaki team, blonde tiger-lizard demon, commands Gatasubal while distracting Kurama and Hiei en route to the match, tortured for information and then killed by same

Minoru Kamiya (Doctor) = one of Sensui's minions, territorial power to propagate an illness of his own design, wields Psychic Scalpel, can manipulate his own body chemistry

Majari = Netherworld minion of Yakumo, from the Poltergeist Report movie, copies all attacks of his opponents, outsmarted by Kuwabara

Masked Fighter = _see "Genkai"_

Metamura = the teacher/father figure for Yen, Ryo, and Kai-Dr. Ichigaki's experiments, poisoned by same Dr. in order to trick the three students

Midorenjya = Team Gorenja, goblin-looking thing, blown up by Karasu

Minoru = one of Sensui's seven personalities, the orator one

Miyuki = Apparition Gang, first of the Triad, Kuwabara refused to fight this girl demon so Yusuke took over, turned out to be a male cross-dressing as a female

Momorenjya = Team Gorenja, the girl, first to be slaughtered by Elder Toguro

Mukuro = one of the three demon kings, invites Hiei, wears faceful of bandages, turns out to be a girl

Murota = mind reader from Sensui Saga, helps good guys, eaten by Gourmet

Murugu = Maze Castle, Suzaku's talking bird assistant, super annoying!

Musashi = Genkai's tournament, samurai with special wooden sword, defeated by Kuwubara

Natsume = Chu's love interest from the Demon World Tournament, one of Raizen's friends, Kujou's twin sister

Ogre = _see "George Saotome"_

Okubo = one of Kuwubara's friends, the fat one

Onji = _see "Suzuka"_

Puu = ONLY THE BEST CHARACTER EVAAARRR! the incarnation of Yusuke's inner soul, hatched from the golden egg, a cute and fluffy blue penguin with floppy ear-wings, transforms into a giant blue phoenix

Raiko = Netherworld minion of Yakumo, from the Poltergeist Report movie, appeals to the evil in a person's mind in order to make them his evil slave, fights Hiei but is outwitted and flamed by the Dragon of the Darkness Flame

Raizen = Yusuke's ancestor, one of the three demon kings, feeds on humans, fell in love with a human and dies of self-inflicted starvation

Rando = Genkai's tournament, the Human Hunter, killed and stolen power of 99 psychics, arrested

by Yusuke

Rei = Hina's best friend, a Koorime ice apparition, threw baby Hiei off the island

Rinku = Team Rokuyokai, yo-yo kid, beats up Kuwubara, becomes friends

Risho = Team Masho, earth powers, defeated by Kuwubara and his love-energy-from-nowhere

Roto = Team Rokuyokai, threatened Kurama's mom Shiori, killed by Kurama

Rugby = Team Spirit Warriors, attacked Yusuke during time off from the Dark Tournament, killed by his team leader Topaz for disobeying the order to stop

Ruka = the "nurse" who imprisons Hiei and the Masked Fighter during the Team Masho round

Ryo (M2) = Dr. Ichigaki Team, black ponytail hair, Invisible Slash, tricked into becoming the Dr's experiment/slave/fighter, freed by Genkai

Sachi = Yomi's second-in-command until Kurama usurps and kills him

Sadao Makihara (Gourmet) = one of Sensui's minions, territorial power to absorb the powers of any other psychic he consumes, taken over after trying to consume Elder Toguro

Sakamoto = school bully of rival school, kidnapps Eikachi and tortures Kuwabara, posessed by Jiyaki, Yusuke beats him up

Sakashita = butler to Tarukane

Sakyo = member of the Black Black Club, sponsor of Team Toguro, trying to create a portal with money, romantic tension with Shizuru, died in stadium collapse

Sasuga = monkey-girl Rinku falls for in the Demon World Tournament

Sayaka = Spirit World employee girl who comes to judge Yusuke's life, tells him how to save Keiko from the fire

Seiryu = Maze Castle, the Blue Dragon, ice powers, sliced up by Hiei

Seitei = one of Raizen's followers, comes with Hokushin to fetch Yusuke from Human World

Sensui = big baddie from season 3, former spirit detective, trying to open a portal between worlds, believes all humans deserve to die, has seven personalities which help him to achieve this goal

Shigure = surgeon who gave Hiei the jagan eye implant, ordered him not to tell Yukina his identity as payment, wields a Phosphorous Ring Sword, commits suicide after being defeated by Kurama in the Demon World Tournament

Shinobu = one of Sensui's seven personalities, the first and purest one of them all

Shiori Minamino = Kurama's human mother, he ranks her life and happiness above his own

Shishi Wakamaru = Team Uraotogi, has fangirls, traps Kuwabara in the Cape of No Return, wields Banshee Shriek sword, pummeled by Genkai, becomes friends

Shizuru Kuwabara = Kazuma Kuwabara's sister, supports the team, looks after Keiko, has high spirit awareness which gives her premonitions of danger, is the guardian for her younger brother, it appears that he learned his violent tendencies from her

Shogo Sato = husband of Kuroko, a writer, tells fortunes

Shorin = undercover name for _Rando_

Shu = one of Raiden's friends, defeats Soketsu in the Demon World Tournament-makes fun of his beret!

Shuichi (Suichi, Shuuichi, Shuiichi, etc) = _see "Kurama", or for Kurama's stepbrother see "Kokoda Hatanaka"_

Shura = Yomi's son, born of an incubation chamber, intended to give his father a political advantage, subject of the dramatic father-son battle in the Demon World Tournament

Sniper = _see "Kaname Hagari"_

Soketsu = one of Raizen's friends, defeats Jin in the Demon World Tournament

Suzaku = Maze Castle, final baddie, uses Storm of Torment and can create seven copies of himself, takes Yusuke a ridiculously long time and all his life energy to defeat

Suzeko Gondawara = member of Black Black Club, sponsor of Team Rokuyokai

Suzuka (Suzuki) = Team Uraotogi, first appears as the old man Onji, later reveals himself as the Beautiful Suzuka, defeated by Genaki, becomes friends

Takanaka = the one decent teacher at Yusuke's school

Tarukane = _see "Gonzo Tarukane"_

Toguro = _see "Younger Toguro" or "Elder Toguro"_

Toho = one of Raizen's followers, comes with Hokushin to fetch Yusuke from Human World

Topaz = Team Spirit Warriors, leader of, killed by Younger Toguro along with his whole team

Touya (Toya) = Team Masho, master of ice, beaten by Kurama, becomes friends

Tsukihito Amanuma (Gamemaster) = one of Sensui's minions, territorial power to bring any video game to life, killed by Kurama, brought back to life by Koenma

Urameshi = _see "Yusuke Urameshi" or "Atsuko Urameshi"_

Uraotoko = weird shadow-demon-thing, controlled by Itsuki, cut open by Kuwubara with his Dimension Sword

Uraurashima = Team Uraotogi, uses fishing pole whip & Idunn Box, shits his grass skirt when Kurama turns into Yoko, stabbed by Shishi and hence loses to Kurama

Yakumo = ruler of Netherworld, big baddie from the Poltergeist Report movie, defeated with a joint attack by Yusuke, Kuwabara, Kurama, and Hiei

Yama (King Yama) = _see "Enma"_

Yanagisawa Mitsunari (Copy) = one of Genkai's students, territorial power to duplicate every feature of any person he touches

Yen (M1) = Dr. Ichigaki Team, orange hair & buck tooth, Angel Blades, tricked into becoming the Dr's experiment/slave/fighter, freed by Genkai

Yomi = one of the three demon kings, blind with six ears and seven horns, Kurama's ex-"partner"

Yoko (Youko) = _see "Kurama"_

Younger Toguro = Team Toguro, ultimate baddie of season 2/Dark Tournament, formerly human but wished to become a demon, winner of the last 50 Dark Tournaments, has the power to upgrade his strength and muscles by percentages, beaten by Yusuke

Yuda = Yomi's advisor, the one with the power-level-quantifier, assistant commentator for Demon World Tournament

Yukina = Hiei's twin sister-but she doesn't know, Koorime ice apparition, possesses healing powers, Kuwubara's love obsession

Yusuke Urameshi = main character of the show, a street punk and a rebel, started out getting hit by a car and dying, wins his life back after a deal with Koenma and a little help from his unofficial-girlfriend Keiko, becomes Spirit Detective and goes around arresting demons in Human World, gets mandatory-invited to the Dark Tournament and wins it with his team after inheriting Genkai's Sprit Orb and living up to his full potential against Younger Toguro, faces off against Sensui during which he dies again but comes back as a demon due to dormant Mazoku genes, is the descendant and heir to Raizen, sponsors the Demon World Tournament in which he loses to Yomi, comes home to live happily-ever-after with Keiko, wields Spirit Gun and Spirit Wave

Zeru = Team Rokuyokai, fire powers, beaten by Hiei and Dragon of the Darkness Flame-at the cost of Hiei's arm

And that, my friends, is all 135 named characters in Yu Yu Hakusho. ^_^

If you think of one that I have left out PLEASE put the name in a review and I'll add it to the list! Or if you know of a different spelling or alias that I've left out as well.

(Props to GwenyfarLace, my best friend, for being the first to tell me all the minor characters I was missing, and whose obsession with YYH inspires me to try to be nerdier than she. ;P )  
(Also thanks to Naitza-Kururugi for correcting me, your edits have been added.)

(Credit to Nameless, the latest person that I'm forcing to watch Yu Yu Hakusho, because my third time watching I found some more characters I'd missed! =O )


	3. Other Terms and Japanese Words

**Other Terms from the Series:**

Instructions: If there is a word or phrase from YYH that you don't understand, why not try looking it up here? Terms are listed alphabetically. If there's a term that confuses you that isn't on this list, put it in a review and I'll add it to the dictionary. (To be honest, I'm hoping you will, cuz this list is pitifully short.)

Alaric = Mukuro's Kingdom

Gandura (Gandara) = Yomi's kingdom

Jagan = the third eye that Hiei had implanted in his forehead

Koorime = ice apparition, such as Yukina

Mazoku (Mazzoku, Muzzuku, Mazakou, etc) = human with dormant demon DNA inherited from a distant ancestor, such as Yusuke

**Japanese Word Definitions:**

Instructions: When we're reading fanfiction for YYH, we often come across unfamiliar Japanese words. Maybe the authors think they're clever for google-translating them, but more likely they just do it because all the other authors do. Here's a list of the most common Japanese words used in YYH fics. If there's a word you don't know and suspect it to be Japanese, scroll down the list (grouped roughly by subject/similarity) until you find it! And as always, leave a review if there's a word you think should be here but isn't!

ningen = human

Ningenkai = Human World

Reikai = Spirit World

Reikai Tantei (or similar spelling) = Spirit Detective Team: Yusuke, Kuwubara, Kurama, & Hiei, collectively

Makai = Demon World

ki = energy, life force, general essence of a person and their power

rei/reiki = spirit energy

youki/yoki = demon energy

youko = demon, usually specific to fox demons

youkai/yokai = demon, much rarer term, usually refers to Hiei

ai shitteru = "I love you"

koi = love

koibito = lover

kawaii = cute

kowaii = scary (but sometimes it's just a misspelling of "kawaii" and is supposed to mean "cute".)

baka = stupid/idiot

kitsune = fox (spirit)

Inari = fox god/goddess (also god of fertility)

toushin = detective, i.e. Yusuke

ototo = younger, as in Younger Toguro

ani = older, as in Elder Toguro

sake = a type of alcohol

-chan/-kun = suffixes of affection

seme = dominant/top male in gay couple

uke = submissive/bottom male in gay couple

owari = end (used to say "The End" at the end of a fic)


End file.
